Combination ladders and chutes



March 27, 1962 J. H. LEVERETT COMBINATION LADDERS AND CHUTES 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 16, 1960 INVENTOR. zi/wa [15/5/6577 March 27,1962 J. H. LEVERETT COMBIfiATION LADDERS AND CI-IUTES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed June 16, 1960 INVENTOR. 5,; A6 [176/6577 V Aime/ 5y COMBINATIONLADDERS AND CHUTES Filed June 16, 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.$601755 1%45V06677 March 27, 1962 J. H. LEVERETT 3,026,961

COMBINATION LADDERS AND CHUTES Filed June 16, 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 4g-u/s.

March 1962 J. H. LEVERETT 3,026,961

COMBINATION LADDERS AND CHUTES Filed June 16, 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 5INVENTOR. JIM/5 hf 5 4 5/2577 United States Patent 3,026,961 7COMBINATION LADDERS AND CHUTES James H. Leverett, 383 Haynes St.,Hackensack, NJ. Filed June 16, 1960, Ser. No. 36,694 6 Claims. (Cl.18221) (Granted under Title 35, U.S. Code.(1952), sec. 266) Theinvention described herein may be manufactured and used by orfor theGovernment of the United States of America for governmental purposeswithout the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

This invention relates to improvements in inter-level passageways, andmore particularly pertains to improve" ments in combination ladders andchutes especially adapted for use on ships.

In the interest of conserving space on sea going vessels to increase thespace available for freight and passengers, and on naval vessels notonly for freight and crew, but also for equipment, armament, and thelike, it has long been the desire to dispense with unnecessary equipmentwhenever possible. However, in the case of indispensable equipment suchas ladders and chutes, the areas provided for ladders to enabletravelling from one deck to another are generally also used for chutesto convey cargo from one deck to another. In such cases, either thereare provided a separate chute and ladder which replaced one anotheraccording to the use required of the same and the item not used wouldthen have to be stored away and occupy valuable space or else the ladderremain in place, and a separate chute or the like temporarily installedand then when not in use removed or stored away. This storage space,there fore, is necessary dead space which in the case of large vesselsmight call for several hundred cubic feet of space.

With the foregoing in mind, one of the objects of the present inventionis to provide a combination ladder and chute which dispenses with theretention of dead storage space which combination is characterized bymovably mounted treads and intervening chute plates which can beactuated with facility in one position to serve as a ladder or staircaseand in another instance serve as a chute merely by actuating the treadsand intervening chute plates in one instance to have the treadspositioned in successive parallel levels to be used as a ladder orstaircase and in the other instance to be positioned with theintervening chute plates in substantial alinement with one another toproduce a substantially plain face to serve as a chute.

It is also an object of the present invention not only to provide acombination ladder and chute in which treads and intervening chuteplates may be actuated from a ladder position into a chute position andagain into a ladder position according to the requirements but also tofacilitate anchoring not only the treads in ladder position and in chuteposition but also anchor the apparatus at different levels possibly at asteeper grade for apparatus to be used as a ladder and a lesser gradewhen the apparatus is to be used as a chute.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of this inventionwill be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood byreference to the following detailed description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the device in ladder forming position,showing a preferred embodiment of the invention;

FZG. 2 is a fragmentary front elevation of the device in ladder formingposition, partly broken away to show details of members;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the device in chute form- 3,026,961Patented Mar. 27, 1 962 'ice ing position, partly broken away to showdetails of members;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary front elevation of the device in chuteforming'position, partly broken away to show details of members;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation of the device in raised position for a use asa chute, and showing the device in lowered position in broken lines.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly broken away, showing amodified form of tread construction;

FIG. 7 is a section taken on the line 77 of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 is a view of the members of FIG. 7 shown in chute position.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The device as shown in FIGS. 1 through 4 comprises left hand and righthand stringer angle members 11 that are secured in spaced parallelrelation by means of an upper bracket plate 13 and a lower bracket plate15, the plates 13 and 15 spanning the distance between members 11 andbeing secured to the outwardly extending flange 16 of each member 11 asby fastening means 17. The lower end of each member 11 is adapted to besecured to a floor or deck '19 by means of a lug plate 21 and couplingfastener 23, and the upper end of each member 11 is adapted to besecured to a wall or bulkhead 25 by means of a lug plate 27 and couplingfastener 29, thereby providing a gangway between a lower and an upperlevel of a structure. Preferably, the coupling fastener 23 is a knockoutpin, to permit varying the slope angle of the device in the mannerhereinafter described.

A plurality of rest members 31 span the major portion of the distancebetween members 11. Each rest member comprises a box providing a tread33, a front riser 35, a rear riser 37 and a chute plate 39, with sideplates 41 completing the six sides of the box defined. The front riser35 and the rear riser 37 are of reduced width, as shown particularly inFIG. 2, to facilitate access to the rest member securing meanshereinafter described. Each rest member 31 is secured rotatably betweenmem bers 11 by rod 43, which passes successively through one stringerangle member 11, one side plate 41, the other side plate 41 and then theother stringer angle member 11, the rod 43 being further provided withspacing washers 45 to center the rest member between members '11, andwith fastening means 47 at the ends of said rod. The rod 43 passesthrough each of plates 41 at apoint proximate tread 33 and proximaterear riser 37 (and remote from chute plate 39 and front riser 35), suchpositioning at a point'outside the axes of symmetry of'the plates 41facilitating rotation of the rest members 31 as hereinafter described.

Left hand and right hand stringer angle'members 49 are positionedparallel to members 11, the members 49 being secured to each rest member31 by fastening means 51 coupling one face 53 of member 49 to side plate41, such fastening means 51 permitting rotation of rest members 31relative members 49. Preferably, members 49 are positioned laterally soas to be movable to a location wherein face 53 lies between a side plate41 and member 11, and the other face 55 is adapted to be seated onmember 11. Further, the fastening means 51 pass through each of plates41 at a point proximate chute plate 39 and front riser 35 (and remotefrom tread 33 and rear riser 37), such positioning at a point outsidethe axes of symmetry of the plates 41 facilitating rotation of the restmembers as hereinafter described.

A handle 57 is secured to each member 49 to facilitate manualtranslation of members 49 relative members 11, whereby the rest members31 are rotated. Rapistan type brace 59 includes a bracket 61 attached tomembers a 11, a telescoping leg 63 depending rotatably from said bracket61, means 65 to lock said leg in selected angular relation to member 11,and means 67 to lock the inner and outer telescoping portions of the legrelative to each other in selected position, whereby the device can befixed and braced in selected angular position relative the deck 19, asshown in FIG. 9.

The ladder position of the device is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, with thetreads 33 in a substantially horizontal plane. When it is desired toconvert the device to use as a chute, handles 57 are grasped and pulledupward and away from the operator, the members 49 thus rotating on theaxes defined by rods 43. Upon continued rotation, members 49. are movedto a position substantially between members 11, the faces 55 of member49 then being seated on members 11 to form a limit stop for suchrotation. The axes defined by rods 43 and fastening means 51 are in suchrelative position that the full translation of members 49 relativemembers 11 will rotate the rest members 31 somewhat more than 90 untilthe chute plates 39 are substantially parallel to members 49 and 11, asshown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Preferably, however, the chute plates do notdefine a single plane. As shown in FIG. 3, the rear portion 69 of chuteplate 39 is lower than the plane defined by the next higher chute plate39, to assist in retarding the rate of descent of a package and todecrease the possibility of a package being caught in the gap betweenadjacent chute plates.

A modified form of tread and chute plate rest member is shown in FIGS.6, 7 and 8. Such modified rest member 71 comprises a plate member havinga tread face 73 and a chute face 75, and side plates 77 extending fromsaid plate member. Each rest member 71 is secured rotatably to stringerangle members 11 and to stringer angle members 49 by bolts 79 and 81respectively, at points outside the axes of symmetry of said plates 77.The leading edge 83 of each rest member is rolled to provide a smoothrounded surface for packages to impinge upon when the device is in thechute position, further aiding in preventing a package from being caughtin the gap between rest members.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show rest members 71 in the ladder position. When restmembers 71 are rotated by means of translation of members 49 on the axesof bolts 79, such rest members assume the position shown in FIG. 8, withchute faces 75 uppermost.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention arepossible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to beunderstood that within the scope of the appended claims the inventionmay be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

I claim:

1. A combination ladder and chute comprising a first pair of spacedstringers, means to secure one end of said stringers rotatably at afirst level and means to secure the other end of said stringersreleasably'at a second level, a second pair of spaced stringers, aplurality of rest members, each rest member having a tread, front riser,chute plate and rear riser plate and a pair of side plates, first andsecond fastening means securing one of said side plates rotatably to oneof said first and to one of said second stringers respectively, thirdand fourth fastening means securing the other of said side platesrotatably to the other of said first and second stringers respectively,said first and second stringers having a relative lateral displacementsufficient to permit rotation of said rest members from a positionwherein said treads are horizontal to a position wherein said chuteplates are substantially parallel to the length of said stringers.

2. The combination of claim 1 in which said first and third fasteningmeans are proximate said tread and said rear riser plate and said secondand fourth fastening means are proximate said chute plate and said frontriser.

3. The combination of claim 2 in which said second stringers include alongitudinal flange providing a limit stop for rotation of said restmembers.

4. The combination of claim 2 further comprising means secured to saidfirst stringers to vary the angle of inclination of the device.

5. The combination of claim 2 in which rotation of said rest membersfrom horizontal position of said treads to substantial parallelism ofsaid chute plates and the length of said stringers passes beyond theposition at which said chute plates define a plane.

6. A combination ladder and chute comprising a first pair of spacedstringers, means to secure one end of said stringers rotatably at afirst level and means to secure the other end of said stringersreleasably at a second level, a second pair of spaced stringers, aplurality of rest members, each rest member comprising a plate having atread face, an opposed chute face and side plates extending normal tothe chute face of said plate, first and second fastening means securingone of said side plates rotatably to one of said first and to one ofsaid second stringers respectively, third and fourth fastening meanssecuring the other of said side plates rotatably to the other of saidfirst and second stringers respectively, said first and third fasteningmeans being proximate said tread face and the rear edge of said plate,said second and fourth fastening means being remote from said tread faceand proximate the front edge of said plate, said first and secondstringers having a relative lateral displacement sufiicient to permitrotation of said rest members from a position wherein said tread facesare horizontal to a position wherein said chute faces have passed theorientation in which they are substantially parallel to the length ofsaid stringers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS421,914 Dormitzer Feb. 25, 1890 963,918 Miller July 12, 1910 1,791,330Sprague Feb. 3, 1931 2,864,542 Marryatt Dec. 16, 1958

